My Epic Gear, a new Vail Resorts membership program that will be offered at Park City Mountain starting in the 2024-25 winter season, is touted as a first-of-its-kind innovation that will give guests the benefits of ski gear ownership at a lower cost and less hassle.
The program will allow guests to select the skis or snowboards they want at the beginning of the season and to be fitted with boots through an app. A My Epic Gear membership for adults, which includes delivery at the resort and slope-side pick-up and drop-off every day, will cost $50 annually and then $50 a day for gear reservations.
“This is less than the average daily cost of owning gear for a destination guest and less than the price of premium demo rentals,” Sara Huey, the resort’s senior manager of communications, told The Park Record in an email.
After its official launch in a year and a half, the program will be available at a dozen resorts, with future expansions expected after that, according to Huey.
“My Epic Gear will leverage our extensive footprint and experience selling, renting and delivering gear, our prime slopeside locations across our mountain resorts, our data, the relationships we have with top gear vendors and over two million Pass Holders, as well as the scale to invest in the technology and most popular gear for our guests,” she said.
Guests will be able choose from name brand, high-quality ski and snowboard boots with customized insoles, Huey said. They also have the option of wearing their own boots if they prefer, she said.
“A huge benefit to My Epic Gear is it will offer more than 60 boot fit combinations,” she said. “My Epic Gear will leverage 3D foot scan technology that each member can use via the My Epic app on their phone. Based on the scan, your boot and boot fit will be recommended, including custom insoles, to ensure the best possible fit.”
In response to the question of whether the program will take away business from local ski and snowboard rental businesses, Huey said the company is focused on the benefit to skiers and riders.
“And we believe continued innovation of the guest experience, including offering skiers and riders more choices for how they access their gear, is a good thing,” she said.
Luke Duma, hard goods manager at JANS Mountain Outfitters in Park City, said picking skis can be easy but it’s better to be fitted for boots in person.
“Every boot fits differently,” he said.
Duma doesn’t expect My Epic Gear to have a big impact on his business.
“Obviously, something new popping up will cut in a little bit,” he said. “Our customer base is pretty solid. I don’t see it affecting us too much but you never know.”
Jordan Johnson, manager of Ski Valet Park City, which does rental delivery services, also said in-person fittings are better because there are so many differences in feet.
“Someone’s left foot could be different than their right foot,” he said.
Johnson said he thinks Vail Resorts is adopting a concierge-type business model because “there’s an untouched pool of money just sitting there and they’re losing that money to other companies.”
“I think it’ll affect us but only to a certain point because every rental company only is capable of dishing out so many skis and also sometimes people want to shop around for prices,” he said of My Epic Gear.
“Over the years, we’ve built good customer bases with a lot of people and I think they’ll be long-term customers still.”